Blockchain-Based Plastic Recycling Centers in Indonesia

Plastic Bank has emerged to be a great eco-friendly platform which encourages consumers to pick up the plastic waste and recycle it. In return, the participants are provided with digital rewards.

In the most recent development, the platform has partnered with SC Johnson, known for manufacturing household cleaning supplies and owner of brands like Mr. Muscle, Glade, and Ziploc. Both the entities, in strategic collaboration with each other, plan to open plastic recycling centers across Indonesia. The press release rolled-out by them on Sunday, October 28 revealed that in return for waste collection, users would be provided with digital tokens.

A Right Step in the Right Direction

Recent scientific data revealed by SC Johnson on the ocean plastic pollution stated that five Asian countries, namely Thailand, Philippines, China, Indonesia and Vietnam are responsible for more than 55% of the plastic waste found in the ocean.

Following this, SC Johnson plans to open eight plastic waste collection centers across Indonesia by May 2019. The first center is already officially opened on October 28, in Bali. The other centers are expected to be operational by May 2019. The company is hopeful and excited about working in this area. Fisk Johnson, the Chairman, and CEO of SC Johnson said that:

“Our oceans need protecting. I applaud the Indonesian government’s pledge to supply $1 billion per year to reduce plastic pollution. Business, government, and NGOs need to come together to take on this important issue. It’s critical that we take action to help stop the increasing amount of plastic leaking into our oceans.”

The founder and CEO of Plastic Bank also seemed to be enthusiastic and said, “This partnership with SC Johnson is the first of its kind in Indonesia. It will help create more opportunities for people living in poverty and will offer waste collectors an important sense of pride. SC Johnson is the first CPG company to scale a program of this kind in Indonesia that will benefit a wide range of socio-economic demographics including local residents living below the poverty level.”

How does it work?

In the case of Indonesia, blockchain technology can help local waste collectors as around 28 million Indonesians live below the poverty line. Therefore, this program is an opportunity for those that depend on waste collection as an income, as well as an encouragement. The collectors can bring the plastic they collect to the center, and they’ll receive digital tokens in exchange. Each center will have the capacity to receive 100 metric tons of plastic per year. The tokens received can be used to purchase goods and services.

As we’ve seen from Plastic Bank’s previous work in Haiti, the collection of plastic waste is a source of income for many. The efforts to bring the initiative to Asia demonstrates the extent of the pollution issue, highlighting the fact that the effort should be global and not only local.

According to the press release, the usage of blockchain technology would help mitigate the risk related to theft. Also, we can expect a (slow) adoption of tokens in the country as collectors and businesses will start using and encouraging access to needed resources through this technology.

The Uses of Blockchain in Social Causes

We have seen a lot of charity programs adopting blockchain technology, all because of the security that it offers. A group in Jordan, UN Women project uses blockchain to provide salary to the fugitives. On the same lines, SP Group in Singapore has announced the launch of a marketplace to sell renewable energy certificates. Recently, the political and socioeconomic crisis in Venezuela sparked donations in the form of cryptocurrencies to help locals deal with the crisis in the country.